Loving in the -kill-time
It was almost night a Shasta was racing with her dog sled to get home in time. Her deliveries had taken quite a while today, and she was determined to get home before it got to late. But by the time she got to the pup tower, everyone was asleep. She sighed and put her sled in its place, and went to take off her uniform. She was just about to go into her pup house when a glint off something shiny caught her eye. She walked over to it.. And gasped. There, laying on the ground, was Sasha and Rocky. A knife was stabbed through them both. Their faces were frozen in smiles. Like they had just enjoyed something wonderfull. And maybe they had. but they had puppies now. And to see them dead... it was almost to much. They had had their whole lives ahead of them. and now, they were gone. Shasta let tears fall down her face and she walked over to Aroura's pup house. Faith, Oliver, and Charity were asleep in their beds. Skye was asleep next to them. No doubt she was on pup sitting duty. She decided to wake Skye first. "Skye, Skye, get up. Get up." She said to her friend. Shaking her. Skye woke up and yawned. "Whats up Shasta." She said to her. Shasta looked down. "Follow me there's something I need to show you." Shasta told her and she walked out of the pup house. Curiously, Skye followed her. When Skye saw Rocky and Sasha, she screamed. That was enough to wake Chase up. He walked over to where she was and he screamed as well. Now Sarah and Zuma raced over to where they were. They screamed as well. Soon every one was out and looking at the horrible scene before them. Oliver, Faith and Charity raced over to their parents. "MOMMY! DADDY! GET UP!" Charity screamed as she sobbed against her mothers body. Oliver walked over to her and comforted her, all the while shedding tears of his own. Faith was shaking her head in disbelief, her teeth gritted together in a snarl, and she was sobbing. She let out a cry of anger and anguish. Sarah walked over to her, and put a paw on her shoulder. Faith glared up at her. "Get off me. I don't need your pity. My parents are DEAD. They should be the only ones to comfort me." She snarled and ran back to Sasha's pup house.Tyler, Jane, Cinnamon, Simon, Aron and Livie were outside the circle of older dogs. Blocking the horrific sight from their view. Aron walked over to Shasta and put a paw on her leg. "Mom? What happened?" He asked her. Shasta turned and held him close. "Shh... No need to worry dear. I'm here." She said to him. Livie walked over to her and tried to look around her mother, only to be picked up and held just as close. Simon and Cinnamon walked over to Sarah, but she shooed them into the pup house. Shasta walked over to her own, holding Aron in her mouth and shooing Livie with her nose. She curled up around them, and they fell asleep. She also fell asleep. The other pups went to their own pup houses. Oliver and Charity went with Skye and her puppies to her den, while Faith slept alone. They were unawares of the eyes watching them from above. It had been a month since Rocky and Aroura died. There had been a curfew given to ALL pups. Young, and old. So far, no more deaths had occured. Shasta came back from another long day of deliveries and was going inside her den. Aron and Livie were already asleep so Shasta was careful not to wake them up. She fell asleep, but was woken up later by a strange sound. A wet... drip... drip... drip.. sound. Shasta walked out side and looked up. She screamed. Up in a tree, Chase and Skye were hanging from a string. Dead. They were tied together in a kissing position, but they were dead. Blood dripped from them and onto the ground. Rubble raced over to Shasta, he hadn't seen them yet. "Shasta! Are you okay?! Did Something happen- Did someone try to kill you?! You know your not supposed to be outside later than-" And then he saw them. His eyes were wide. "no.. They can't be... BUT THEY ARE! EVERYONE! SKYE AND CHASE ARE DEAD!" he screamed. Sarah, Shooter, Zuma,and Everest raced out side. Tyler and Jane raced out side as well. . They both sobbed. Shasta herself was angry. Who would do this?! First Rocky and Aroura, now Chase and Skye?! How did they even get to them?! She was determined not to let this happen again. Oliver and Charity came out and gasped. Faith walked out side and raced over to Livie. "I'm so sorry Jane," Faith said. Jane leaned against Faith. Aron and Livie came out and gasped. Shasta turned on them and shooed them back in the pup house. She walked over to Tyler, Oliver, and Charity. "Would you like to sleep with me tonight?" She asked them. They nodded and went into her den. Tyler was still crying, but eventually he fell asleep. Shasta wrapped her tail around the five pups. Why.. Why was this happening. Then suddenly she realized something. Where was Marshall? He wasn't there when Rocky and Aroura died, and now he wasn't here for this? Something was very wrong... And she needed to find out what. Everyone went back to their pup houses. And again, a pair of Blue and red eyes watched them. Another month had passed with nothing happening. Everyone was still on guard. Tonight would be an exact month since the last killing, and everyone was nervous. Shasta vowed to stay up all night and catch this killer. Night came, and Shasta began her watch. The pups were asleep and she quietly walked over to the entrance. She watched vigilantly. But soon, Her eyes grew heavy and she was tempted to go to sleep. But she kept her eyes open. After a few hours of nothing happening, she started to doubt that the killer would appear tonight. Then she saw movement. She saw a pup walk out of his pup house. A knife in hand. It was Marshall. Shasta gasped and started shaking. Suddenly she heard a scream, then another... then... She was shaken awake. "Shasta! Shasta it's Sarah and Zuma! Their dead!" Rubble said. Shasta jumped up, the pups were jolted awake. She looked around and realized she was in her bed. She raced out side and froze. Sure enough, there were Sarah and Zuma. Dead. On the ground. They looked just like Aroura and Rocky did. They were smiling, but the light was gone from their eyes and there was a knife through their hearts. Simon and Cinnamon were their sides, sobbing. Just like all the other pups had. Was it just her, or was all the dogs targeted couples? All the rest of the pups came out. Faith raced over to Simon, this was her chance to warm up to her crush. She comforted him. Along with Jane, They took him into their pup house. They had taken over Aroura's pup house as their own. Cinnamon, being a runt and much smaller and sensitive, was left alone. Shasta sighed. She couldn't leave a pup like this. She would take in this one too. Suddenly Marshall appeared in the clearing. "SARAH?! ZUMA?! NO!" He cried and raced over to them. Shasta growled and bowled him over. "YOU! YOU KILLED THEM!" She snarled. "What... No I didn't..." He said. He looked terrified. Rubble and Shooter walked over to them. "What are you talking about Shasta?" Rubble asked her. "I SAW YOU! YOU HAD A KNIFE!" She growled. "What.. Are you talking about?" Marshall asked her. "DON'T PLAY INNOCENT! YOU-" She started to say but was cut off by Rubble. "I know your angry. We all are. But that doesn't mean you have to blame Marshall." Rubble told her. Sarah looked at him with disbelief. "But I-" Shasta started. "No buts. Come on, This isn't the Shasta I know and love." Rubble said. Shasta sighed. She was probably overreacting. What she had seen last night must have just been a dream. Shasta sighed. It was time to get to the bottom of this. It had almost been a full month since last time someone was killed. Tonight would be the dawn of a full month since the last kill. Again, Shasta was on guard. She wasn't going to let any one else die. This time, she didn't just stick to her pup house. She patroled the entire clearing. up and down, up and down, She paced in front of all the pup houses. She was determined to not let anything distract her. "Hey Shasta, you couldn't sleep either?" A familiar voice asked. She whirled around to see Rubble smiling at her. "Yeah, I'm to worried that some one is going to be killed." She said. Rubble nodded. "Me too. So, who so you think did it?" He asked her. "Did what?" She asked. "Killed them." he said. "At first I thought for sure it was Marshall, but now I'm not so sure. Maybe Shooter...?" She said. "Nah, probably not Shooter. More like some escaped criminal. That's my bet." He said looking up at the stars. "that is always a possibility, but I'm not so sure." She said. Rubble nodded. "Do you remember how Rocky hated water?" He asked her. She laughed and nodded. "He sure did, and do you remember how much Sasha hated mud?" She asked him. He laughed and nodded too. They started to list a bunch of facts about their dead friends. Hours passed and it was well past midnight. Everything was perfect in Shasta's eyes. She loved talking to Rubble. Suddenly Rubble stopped mid-speech. His eyes widened. Blood dripped down his face, and he collapsed. "RUBBLE!" Shasta screamed. But it was muffled by a paw over her mouth. "Hello Shasta." A gruff, but familiar voice said. Shasta whirled around and saw Marshall. He was holding a knife, but he didn't look normal. For one thing, where his eyes would be white they were blue and his blue eyes were red. They also looked reptilian. "I WAS RIGHT! IT WAS YOU!" She growled. Marshall laughed. "Thats right. But, no one will know. Because you will be dead, and nothing will save-" Marshall was cut off by a gun shot. Marshall's eyes drained of life and he collapsed. Behind him was Shooter. He was holding a gun and he was crying. "Sh-Shooter! you saved me!" She cried. Shooter nodded. All the pups came out to see what was going on. they saw Marshall and Rubble and screamed. "It's all right! We got the killer! We killed him!" Shasta said happily. She walked over to Rubble. "Rubble, wake up! We got him! We got the killer!" Rubble didn't move. "Rubble... get up... RUBBLE!" And so... The killer was caught. But they had lost so many lives. Rubble joined in those numbers leaving a sadened mate and pups. At least now, they would be at peace. THE END